Shakur Stevenson is a great interview.
The 27-year-old WBC lightweight champion wears his heart on his sleeve, wants to be great, and loves his craft. Combine that with his all-world skills in the ring, and you will have a pretty intriguing presence in boxing.
Stevenson was in Los Angeles for Saturday’s colossal card featuring his mentor and friend Terence Crawford, who is vying to win a world title in his fourth weight class.
While in L.A., Stevenson was interviewed by Boxing News, and the promotional free agent discussed a number of topics. Here is a look at the entire interview:
In addition to giving his predictions for the upcoming Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol and Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk rematches Stevenson reaffirmed his desire and assurance that he would eventually square off with WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis.
Stevenson also expressed his disappointment in Vasily Lomachenko’s decision not to fight him in the past, but he also respected and looked up to the Ukrainian great when both were with Top Rank. When Stevenson was asked about potentially signing with Matchroom and Eddie Hearn, the former clarified that he had yet to decide on the promoter he would sign with next.
There were rumors that Stevenson had reached an agreement with undefeated Golden Boy fighter William Zepeda, but the latter’s promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, called that report “fake news,” and Stevenson wouldn’t confirm anything on his side.
Zepeda would be an excellent opponent for Stevenson at this career stage. The former is a legitimate threat. He’s 28 years old and has 27 KO wins in his 31 professional fights.
Zepeda is a punishing body puncher with a come-forward style and an excellent gas tank. Stevenson would have a speed advantage, which could be enough, but there is no questioning the respect he would earn if he defeated Zepeda.
Stevenson’s contract with Top Rank ended following his July unanimous decision win over Artem Harutyunyan.
Despite criticism from many in the boxing community who called the performance boring, there was an immediate rush to sign Stevenson, with Matchroom and Golden Boy seemingly throwing their hats in the ring.
Even Top Rank wasn’t ruled out in a potential reunion. Stevenson could also elect to go independent as his “big brother” Terence Crawford has done, potentially aligning the younger brother with Turki Alalshikh and Riyadh Season.
November 23 is a crucial date, as that’s when Davis was initially scheduled to face Lomachenko. With the latter electing to take the rest of the year off, Davis needs an opponent, which could be Stevenson. The next news we get on either man’s future will test us something about the other’s next move.